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Monday, August 18, 2014

Cope To Head Chase Elliott's NNS Effort In 2015

JR Motorsports announced
today that it will pull from within to fill its impending crew chief vacancy,
as Ernie Cope will transition from the No. 5 team to Chase Elliott’s No. 9 NAPA
AUTO PARTS team at the conclusion of this season.

Cope will take over for
Greg Ives. Last month it was announced that Ives would be Steve Letarte’s
successor on the No. 88 Hendrick Motorsports team in the NASCAR Sprint Cup
Series. Ives and Cope will finish out the year in their respective roles. Ives
and Elliott currently lead the NASCAR Nationwide Series standings by 10 points
over teammate Regan Smith with 11 races to go.

“It became clear rather
quickly that the absolute best option for Chase and the NAPA team next year is
already in this building,” general manager Kelley Earnhardt Miller said. “Ernie
builds fast cars, has a good rapport with Chase, and is familiar with the
inner-workings of our company. Hopefully that will create a seamless transition
at the end of the year, and the No. 9 team will continue its championship form
right into 2015.”

A veteran from Spanaway,
Wash., Cope has more than 12 years of experience as a NASCAR crew chief. He
joined JR Motorsports prior to 2014 to spearhead its part-time team driven
primarily by Kevin Harvick, Kasey Kahne, and Dale Earnhardt Jr. Three of Cope’s
12 career victories have come this year, as Harvick drove to wins at Richmond
(April 25) and Kentucky (June 27) while Kahne was victorious at Daytona (July
4). Harvick has been the driver in 10 of Cope’s 12 wins starting in 2009.

“Kevin and I have enjoyed a
lot of success, and we’re not done yet,” Cope said. “There is a lot of racing
left this year, but in putting the pieces together for 2015, I couldn’t pass up
the opportunity to compete the full race schedule. I’ve been able to do that
only once, and that was in 2011 with Elliott Sadler when we finished second in
the championship. I’d like another shot at it, and Chase Elliott is an
extremely talented race car driver.”

A crew chief for the No. 5
team in 2015 is not yet determined. Earnhardt Miller said the company will
conduct a thorough search and take as much time as necessary to find the best
candidate.

“Pairing Kevin Harvick and
Dale Jr. with the best crew chief possible is extremely important to us, and
we’re prepared to take as much time as needed to fill that position,” Earnhardt
Miller said.